Preview: Norwich City vs Coventry City - prediction, team news, lineups

League leaders Coventry City will head on their travels for Monday's Championship meeting with Norwich City at Carrow Road.

The two sides may be operating at opposite ends of the table, but they will both enter the fixture buoyed by back-to-back league victories.

Match preview

Phillippe Clement has sparked a significant upturn in fortunes since he became Norwich boss in November, claiming 21 points from his 13 league matches, representing a marked improvement on the nine points they took from their first 15 Championship outings.

The Canaries have put together a three-game winning run since losing to Stoke City on January 4, beginning with an emphatic 5-1 home victory over League Two outfit Walsall in the FA Cup third round.

They went on to beat Wrexham 2-1 at the Racecourse Ground, before they hammered West Bromwich Albion 5-0 in Tuesday's away clash.

After taking a narrow lead in the break, Ali Ahmed, Anis Slimane, Ben Chrisene and Mathias Kvistgaarden all got on the scoresheet in the second period as Norwich eased to a third successive away league win.

Norwich's impressive form has moved them out of the drop zone, although they cannot afford to rest on their laurels with just one point separating them from the bottom three.

The Canaries may fancy their chances of adding to their 30-point tally in Monday's clash against the league leaders, having avoided defeat in each of their previous 13 competitive head-to-head matches (W9, D4).

Coventry have recovered from a three-game winless league run to get their promotion bid back on track with consecutive home victories.

After claiming a 2-1 victory over Leicester City, the Sky Blues repeated that scoreline in Tuesday's meeting with Millwall, thanks to goals from former Lions attacker Romain Esse and USA international Haji Wright.

Having racked up 58 points from 28 matches, Frank Lampard's side currently enjoys a three-point cushion to second-placed Middlesbrough and an eight-point buffer over Ipswich Town and Hull City in third and fourth spot respectively.

The Sky Blues will be looking to add three more points to their name on Monday, but that may be easier said than done for a side that have gone five consecutive Championship away games without a win (D3, L2).

They have also not beaten Coventry since they enjoyed a run of three consecutive head-to-head victories from March 2008 to February 2009.

That said, the visitors certainly possess the firepower to see off Norwich, having scored 61 goals in the Championship this season - 13 more than the division's second highest scorers, Ipswich.

Norwich City Championship form:

W L W L W W

Norwich City form (all competitions):

L W L W W W

Coventry City Championship form:

W L D L W W

Coventry City form (all competitions):

L D L L W W

Team News

Norwich left-back Lucien Mahovo is set for a significant spell on the sidelines after picking up a muscle injury in training.

The Canaries are also without the services of Ante Crnac, Amankwah Forson, Gabriel Forsyth, Jeffrey Schlupp and Mirko Topic due to injury, while Josh Sargent remains in a stand-off with the club over a potential move to Toronto FC.

Jose Cordoba and Anis Slimane are pushing for recalls after featuring as half-time substitutes in the 5-0 triumph against West Brom.

Meanwhile, Coventry defender Bobby Thomas has completed a three-game ban, but he is a doubt for Monday's fixture due to a calf issue.

Like Thomas, the Sky Blues will also make a late decision on Kaine Kesler-Hayden, who is closing in on a return following an ankle problem.

Victor Torp could come into Lampard's thinking if the Coventry boss opts to freshen up his midfield.

Norwich City possible starting lineup:

Kovacevic; Fisher, McConville, Cordoba, Chrisene; Mattsson, McLean; Schwartau, Slimane, Ahmed; Makama

Coventry City possible starting lineup:

Rushworth; Van Ewijk, Latibeaudiere, Kitching, Dasilva; Torp, Grimes; Esse, Rudoni, Mason-Clark; Wright

We say: Norwich City 2-2 Coventry City

Coventry may be leading the way in the Championship, but they have failed to win any of their previous five league games on the road, and with that in mind, we think they will have to settle for a share of the spoils against a rejuvenated Norwich side.

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